Likely Stories -Empty Mansions by Bill Dedman

I love reading memoirs and one of the best I have read in years is Empty Mansions: The mysterious life of Huguette Clark and the spending of a Great American Fortune by Bill Dedman. This was a fascinating nonfiction that examined the life of Huguette Clark, one of the richest women in America who lived the last 20 years of her life in a simple hospital bed despite owning palatial homes in California, New York, and Connecticut.

Dedman, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist partnered with Paul Clark Newell, Huguette’s cousin for this 2013 release to examine her mysterious and unusual life. The beginning of the book explored Hughette’s early life and the making of the great American fortune.

Clark’s father, W. A. Clark was nearly as rich as Rockefeller in his day. He was a controversial senator, founder of Las Vegas, and stripped much of the copper in Montana...this part of the story was as informative as it was infuriating. His home was the largest in New York City with 121 rooms for a family of four.

Slowly over the years, Huguette became more and more reclusive. She inherited a 300 million-dollar fortune and her life was touched as much by 9/11 as it was being a first class ticket holder to the maiden voyage of the Titanic.

The second part of the book focuses on the controversial spending of Huguette’s wealth and infuriating elder abuse and monetary misconduct.

Clark’s nurse received 30 million dollars in gifts and a hospital in New York kept Clark as a patient for years to rack up quite a bill. No photograph had been taken of Huguette in decades when she passed away at 104 years old in 2009 and she owed the IRS 82 million dollars in gift taxes with the bill rising 9,000 dollars a day from penalties and interest due to the mismanagement of her estate. Even with this hefty bill, Clark’s fortune stood at 308 million dollars and relatives came out of the woodwork for a slice of the fortune.

This narrative nonfiction read like a novel and is full of photographs of Huguette and her inner circle. For more information on Huguette, visit emptymansionsbook.com to see pictures of Huguette, images of the beautiful paintings she created, tour her homes and even view a canceled check made out to her nurse for five million dollars. Can you imagine receiving that check? Pick up this highly discussable deep dive into American history, mega wealth, and elder care.

Until the next episode of Likely Stories, I wish you a pile of good books and a cozy reading spot!

RECENT EPISODES OF LIKELY STORIES

Likely Stories - The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

The “Soulmate” by Sally Hepworth. Sally Hepworth is an Australian writer, and she is a New York Times bestselling author.How much are we willing to put up with when it comes to the ones we love? Is there such a thing as a perfect marriage? When are we enabling the ones we love instead of helping them? These are all questions you will ask yourself as you read this book.

Likely Stories - This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews

Welcome to Likely Stories. I am Erin Penn and I would like to share with you my new obsession. “This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me” by Ilona Andrews, the first book in the Maggie the Undying fantasy series.“This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me”, but not for lack of trying.

Likely Stories - The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

Hello, and welcome to Likely Stories, everyone. I’m Paige Connell, and I am an English teacher, so it feels like, sometimes daily, I am “fighting the good fight” against the use of AI in place of real thinking and writing, the omnipresence of technology in our communication, and the detriment that those things can produce in a new generation. But lest I sound too cranky, let me say what a refreshing delight it was to read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (and I do mean read it in physical form versus listening or reading on my Kindle, as even I am wont to often do).

Likely Stories - Love, Sivvy by R.L. Toalson

I'm Joe Riley, and this is Likely Stories. I recently accompanied my wife, a school librarian, to the Texas Library Association convention. She won an award, and I'm proud of her, but this is not a review of her, but rather of a book she picked up there: an autographed copy of 'Love, Sivvy', a novel inspired by the life letters and diaries of young Sylvia Plath.

Likely Stories - Saints and Liars by Deborah Dwork

I consider myself a fairly courageous person, but I will confess after reading this book, I’ve decided maybe not. To purposefully travel to foreign countries to put yourself in harm’s way to protect complete strangers is a level of bravery reserved for the military, not your neighbors.Welcome to “Likely Stories.”I’m Diane Kemper.

Likely Stories - Trouble Boys by Bob Mehr

Hi, Malcolm Foster here, operations assistant at KWBU and habitual stacker of books that one day, hopefully, will eventually be read. For this week's episode of Likely Stories, I’m combining two of my passions. Music and the written word.

Likely Stories - The Academy by Elin Hilderbrand

Hi, and welcome back to another edition of Likely Stories. I’m Paige Connell, and I teach English at Midway High School. Growing up, I went to a private school for many years, though it wasn’t a boarding school, and whether it’s in real life or in pop culture, I think there’s just something about the prestige and allure of a private academy that makes people want to know all the potentially lurid details of life behind the curtain.

Likely Stories - Why I Love Horror by Becky Siegel Spatford

I have a confession to make. I hate jump-scare horror movies. I always have. I don’t enjoy being startled. It took me until adulthood before I could even watch fireworks without bracing myself for the next explosion. (Truth be told, I still kind of do). I’m not a huge fan of gory horror movies either. And yet, I absolutely love horror novels.

Likely Stories - Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word and Me by Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor

I’m Kevin Tankersley, and this is Likely Stories.

Likely Stories - The Land and Its People by David Sedaris

My name is Maggie McCarthy and today I will be reviewing The Land and Its People by David Sedaris.

Likely Stories - Two Old Women by Velma Wallis

I'm not a huge fan of hot weather. My summer reads tend to be set in cold climates, in wintertime- books that take me away from the heart of Texas. Two Old Women by Velma Wallis is a perfect diversion.

Likely Stories - A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L Peck

Imagine if one day you suddenly discovered that the tenets that have governed your life, through no choice of your own, have been undeniably broken. This is exactly where protagonist Soren Johanssen finds himself at the start of Steven L Peck’s novella, ‘A Short Stay in Hell.’